Recently, I read an article with this headline, “How I cope with the stress of emergency work.“ Here’s the bottom line response from the anonymous responder quoted in the article “support from colleagues and a recognition of the need for ‘coping’ strategies have made this my life. And it’s a good life.” Her use of the single quotation mark. The strategies she mentions enhance and contribute to her “good life.”
One of the responses I got to the article “What’s Your Positivity Ratio?”* was that being with positive people will bump up your positivity. The people in your life play the biggest role in your well-being. It is not just about being with positive people, it is also about being with people who care about each other.
In the article referred to above, sharing “common bonds” was mentioned more than once. In stressful situations like working as physicians and nurses with very ill patients, demanding families and lots of time pressure to meet needs of patients and documentation, it is hard to always be positive. Sharing the common bond of your work and sense of purpose can improve your well-being at work. It certainly can decrease the sense of isolation some healthcare practitioners feel as they go from one patient to another and interact with EHR rather than with each other. What’s one thing you can do to acknowledge and enhance the bond you have with colleagues? The answer goes beyond talking about the frustrations of the work and may include offering to help in some way, as well as acknowledging the work a colleague is doing, or the sadness that sometimes comes when you allow yourself to feel for your patients and families.
The second part of this nurse’s ‘coping’ strategies had a lot to do with finding the right hobby. The life you have beyond work plays a major role in how you feel when you get to, are at and go home from work. The thought of a hobby may trigger thoughts like “what now, another thing I should be doing… I’m not busy and pressured enough.” You may not have time for a hobby right now, and it is important for you to set aside some time to do activities which get you into flow. Activities when you are so engaged that you lose track of time, you’re a bit challenged and the accomplishment at the end of the time is meaningful. I’ve read that you can get into “flow” even doing the dishes; somehow that doesn’t do it for me. When you can make even a mundane task into a challenge or a game, or reframe it to see to how it fits into a bigger purpose, the task does get elevated. There is a possibility of getting into flow and experiencing the rhythm and being present with the task at hand. For more on flow check out this article.
For more personalized ways to enhance your well-being, contact me and reconnect with your personal joy so you can live with greater ease.
Revitalize Your Life,
Dina, 203.744.YOU3 (9683)
Co-Active Coach
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